Art of and apparatus for the prevention of the accumulation of frazil and anchor ice in or on water-power apparatus.



Eon 838,56. PATENTED DEC. 18, 1906.

.1. MURPHY. NET 0:? AND APPARATUS EOE THE PREVENTION OF THE ANENNNLATINN0F FRAZIL AND ANGHOR ICE IN OR 0N WATER, POWER APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 10, 1906.

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No. 838,564. PATENTBD DEC. 18, 1906.

. J.. MURPHY, ART OF AND APPARATUS FOR THE PREVENTION OF THEACGUMULATION 0F FRAZIL AND ANCHOR ICE IN OR 0N WATER POWER APPARATUS.APPLICATION FILED FEB.10, 1908 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

WITNESSES: INVENTOR.

BY Z Tf Z 5754/ fiNEk-Y UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN MURPHY, OF OTTAWVA, ONTARIO, CANADA.

ART OF AND APPARATUS FOR THE PREVENTION OF THE ACCUMULATION OF FRAZlLAND ANCHOR ICE IN OR ON WATER-POWER APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 18, 1906.

To coZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN MURPHY, of the city of Ottawa, in the Provinceof Ontario, Canada, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inthe Art of and Appa-' ratus for the Prevention of the Accumulation ofFrazil and Anchor Ice in or on T/Vater Power Apparatus, of which thefollowing is a specification.

The object of my invention is to provide means for preventing anchor-iceand frazil or slush ice from adhering to surfaces of water-powerapparatus which are exposed to the water, and thus by restricting orclosing the openings in said apparatus interfering with the properoperation of the same.

In the operation of hydraulic power plants one of the most seriousdifficulties met with is the tendency of the apparatus to become coveredor filled with icy accumulations, which if allowed to gather for even ashort while will entirely block the openings and prevent any water fromflowing through, thus causing a stoppage of the water-wheels. Theseaccumulations are due to the presence or the formation in the water ofanchorice and frazil. Anchor-ice is a species of ice which forms on andadheres to the beds of streams. When this ice is loosened by heat fromthe suns rays or other causes, it rises to the to and floats down as aspongy mass, which, tl ough not sticky like frazil, when it comes incontact with the apparatus clogs the passages and stops the flow of thewater. Frazil is a form of ice caused by the action of air at atemperature below the freezingpoint, extracting heat from the films ofwater exposed thereto, and by thus lowering the temperature of the samea very small fraction of 1 centigrade below freezing point converting itinto a sticky mass. This undercooling, which results in the formation offrazil, has been determined by scientific observation not to exceedabout .006 of 1 below 0 centigrade.

It is found that anchor-ice and frazil will stick to any surface withwhich they may come into contact under ordinary conditions. I have foundthat anchor-ice and frazil will not stick to metal surfaces if asufficient quantity of heat is imparted to these surfaces to maintainthem at a temperature of 0 centigrade or slightly over. My inventionconsists, therefore, in applying sufficient heat to the metal parts ofthe apparatus with which the water comes in contact to keep theirtemperature at or slightly above 0 centigrade. This will prevent theanchor-ice and frazil from sticking to the metal parts, so that the icewill be carried through the apparatus and through the wheel withoutcausing any injurious effects. Heat may be imparted to these parts inmany different ways, and I do not desire to restrict myself to anyparticular means employed.

I illustrate in the drawings the methods of applying heat to therack-bars of a waterpower plant and also to the wheel-casings.

Figure 1 is a vertical diagrammatic section showing a power plantprovided with my improvements. Fig. 2 is a front elevation of rack-barsarranged to be heated by electrical energy. Fig. 3 is an end view of thesame. Fig. 4 is a sectional detail showing the method of insulating thebars.

In the drawings like letters of reference indicate corresponding partsin the different figures.

The apparatus in general is such as is ordinarily employed and need notbe particularly referred to.

A is the power-house wall; B, the watersupply; C, the rack, and D thecasing of the water-wheel, located at the bottom of the penstock.

In Fig. 1 I show the rack heated by means of a coil of steam-pipes Ewhich may be supplied with steam from within the powerhouse. These pipesare cased in by a wooden facing F, which prevents the radiation of heatto the outer air. These pipes heat the metalbars of the rack C, and thusprevent the sticking of the frazil and anchor ice to the same. Most ofthe anchor-ice and frazil will thus pass between the rack-bars, and theremainder bein loose is easily scraped away by the attendants. I alsoshow a steampipe G leading into the dome of the casing of thewater-wheel. The dome is thus heated and imparts its heat to the otherparts of the casing of the waterw heel, effectually preventing, as Ihave demonstrated inpractioe, the accumulation of ice within or aboutthe wheel.

In Figs. 2, 3, and 4: I show means for electrically heating therack-bars. The rack or screen is composed of thin bars of iron H, whichare connected with the supports I by means of hooks J, secured to theouter bars. The bars are connected by bolts K and are spaced by means ofsuitable separators L. I insulate the bars from the bolts and separatorsby means of the split bushings M, which are provided with flanges N toengage opposite sides of the bars. In order to form an electric circuit,the ends of the bars are laterally offset, so that the bars may beconnected together alternately at opposite ends, as shown in Fig. 2.Connections may be made by welding the ends of the bars together, byriveting them, or in any other suitable manner. The end bars may beprovided with the terminals 0 and P. Thus an electric current may becaused to flow through the entire length of each bar in the rack. Thesupports I are preferably made of wood, and insulating material isprovided between the angle-bars Q, connected with these supports andthehooks J.

I am aware that attempts have been made to heat the water passingthrough waterpower apparatus in order to prevent the accumulation offrazil and anchor ice. Owing to the enormous quantity of water to beheated, such attempts have usually been complete failures. I have foundby calculation that in order to heat the whole of the water passingthrough the power plant at which my experiments were made it wouldrequire an expenditure of energy greater than the output of the plant,whereas with my process I found in actual practice that under severeweather conditions it required less than ten per cent. of the totalplant-output to maintain the temperature of the rack-bars at such apoint that frazil or icy accumulations would not adhere theretothat is,in a hydro-electric power plant with an output of threethousand-horsepower it required an expenditure of twohundred-and-forty-horse power ofelectrical energy through the rackbars to destroy the effect of frazilor anchor ice thereon. My experiments also show that atwenty-horse-power boiler will generate steam sufficient to effectivelykeep clear wheels of one-thousand-horse-power capacity.

When it is considered that the energy for supplying heat to theapparatus is consumed only during periods when the weather conditionsare such that frazil anchor ice is being formed, and even then notcontinuously, the quantity consumed for this purpose is negligible incomparison with the loss sustained by the plant becoming shut downcompletely or by the gates freezing up and becoming unmanageable.

I am aware that steam has been employed to thaw frozen water-powerapparatus or remove ice therefrom; but it has never before beendemonstrated that water-power apparatus might be rendered free fromtroubles due to frazil and anchor ice by means of the continuousapplication of comparatively small quantities of heat applied to thesurfaces with which the water comes in contact.

What I claim as my invention is 1. The art of preventing theaccumulation of frazil or anchor ice on water-power appa ratus, whichconsists essentially in directly imparting suflicient heat to the partsof the apparatus in contact with the running water to maintain them at atemperature at or above 32 Fahrenheit, and arranging that so far aspossible the heat used escapes to the water only from the parts of theheated apparatus, substantially as described.

2. The art of preventing the accumulation of frazil or anchor ice onwater-power apparatus, which consists essentially in directly impartingto the apparatus, and the films of running water immediately in contactthere with, sufficient heat to prevent the undercooling of .006centigrade, which results in the production of frazil-ice, and arrangingthat so far as possible the heat used escapes to the water only from theparts of the heated apparatus,substantially as described.

3. In the art of preventing the accumulation of frazil or anchor ice inwater-power apparatus the combination with the parts of the apparatusthrough which running water flows, of means for directly introducingheat units into said parts, the said means being ar ranged so that asfar as possible the heat used escapes to the water only from the partsof the heated apparatus, substantially as described.

4. In the art of preventing the accumulation of frazil or anchor ice onracks or screens, the combination with the rack through which therunning water passes; of means for directly introducing heat units intothe bars of the rack, the said means being arranged so that as far aspossible the heat used escapes to the water only from the parts of theheated apparatus, substantiallyas described.

5. The combination with a rack or screen through which water passes, ofmeans for introducing electrical energy into the bars of the rack toraise their temperature, substantially as described.

6. A rack or screen composed of bars, be tween which water is to pass,arranged in electrical contact with each other to form a continuousconductor, substantially as described.

7. A rack or screen composed of bars, between which water is to pass,the bars having their ends electrically connected to form a metal bars,and means for preventing the 10 continuous zizgag electric conductor,subescape of heat from the upper ends of the stantially as described.bars, of means for introducing heat units to 8. The combination of arack-section comthe bars, substantially as described. 5 posed of bars,insulated separators arranged Ottawa, Ontario, February 7, 1906.

between the consecutive bars, and means for JOHN MURPHY. f supplyingelectrical energy to the bars, sub- In presence ofstantially asdescribed. HAROLD FIsHER,

9. The combination of a rack composed of M. M. MURPHY.

